James Harden Shocked Thunder Didn’t Give Him More Time to Make Decision

New Rocket’s franchise player James Harden was shocked the Oklahoma City front office didn’t give him more time to decide whether to accept their 4-year $54 million offer. Here’s what he told yahoo sports.

“After everything we established – everything we had done – you give me an hour?” Harden told Yahoo! Sports on Monday afternoon. “This was one of the biggest decisions of my life. I wanted to go home and pray about it. It hurt me. It hurt.”

Asked if additional time might have caused him to accept a deal several million dollars short of the $60 million maximum contract Harden had long sought, he responded: “Who knows? Another day, who knows what another day would’ve done?”

What the Oklahoma City Thunder had last year was special. There was a youthful “Us Against the World” mentality that was endearing. They liked each other on and off the court, loved playing together, and those things made them successful and a joy to watch. All of that was ruined when Harden was abruptly traded. There was something magical about that OKC team and it won’t be easy to get it back.

But don’t feel sorry for Harden…that chip on his shoulder will carry him far.